1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the art of electrical connectors and more particularly, to an electrical connector having resilient contacts for connecting with a complementary electrical connector.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Spring contacts for electrical interfaces are well known in the prior art and represent a wide family of technology for providing interconnection between electrical contact elements. A known type of such a conventional connector is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,621 B1 issued to Natori et al. on Nov. 13, 2001. The Natori connector comprises an insulator and a plurality of contact elements fixed to the insulator. The conventional contact element includes a fixing portion to be fixed to an insulator, a U-shaped portion connected to one end of the fixing portion, a contacting portion connected to the U-shaped portion, and a terminal portion connected to the other end of the fixing portion for being soldered to a circuit board.
However, the contact element relies upon the spring force substantially only from a resilient deformation of the U-shaped portion. The contact elements of the Natori connector may be distorted or become robustless after repeatedly mating with the complementary connector. In order to maintain a reliable contact between the contact elements, it is desired to make the U-shaped portion develop a considerably large spring bias. Moreover, the terminal portions of the Natori contact elements are arranged in a common side of the insulator. The Natori connector is mounted to the circuit board relies upon the terminal portion soldered to the circuit board only. Thus, soldering joints are easily damaged, resulting in an unreliable connection between the contact element and the circuit board, thereby rendering the connector inoperative. Particularly, to a heightened profile connector, the above-mentioned problems are more distinct.
Hence, an improved electrical connector having reliable contacts is desired to overcome the foregoing shortcomings.